Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (CDU) accused AfD party chair Alice Weidel of spreading a deliberate lie about alleged German gas deliveries to Ukraine. In a statement to the “Bild” (Thursday edition) he said, “We do not ship German gas from our storage reserves to Ukraine – and gas in Germany is also not scarce”. He called Weidel’s claim shameless and, according to him, “brazenly deceptive toward the German people”.
At the same time Wadephul criticized the AfD for what he described as “systematic pro‑Russian propaganda”. He stressed that Germany “firmly supports the Ukraine in its struggle for freedom against Russian aggression”.
Weidel had addressed journalists on Monday, asserting that Germany’s gas storage is almost empty and that, nevertheless, former Chancellor Merz had decided to redirect the remaining gas to Ukraine.
The Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs also disputed Weidel’s narrative. A spokesperson stated that the federal government does not finance or coordinate gas deliveries to Ukraine, not even as part of a German‑Ukrainian energy partnership. Instead, gas flows are “normal commercial transactions of the private sector”. The phrase “Germany is delivering” was deemed misleading.
According to the Federal Network Agency, German gas storage levels are currently 20.67 % full. Since mid‑September, storage levels have been below the daily averages of 2018‑2021. The Agency noted that supply conditions have evolved over the years; Germany now has multiple import options, including pipelines from Norway and LNG terminals.